tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81132568311815397012024-03-05T04:18:00.962-06:00*Neinast* Life At Its Finest!the blog of a stylish girl, a comic lovin' boy, two sweet boys and "don't be fooled by my cuteness" dog. together, we're learning about marriage, raising kids, serving in ministry, owning a home, working, crafting, and everything in between!abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03577274271976643925noreply@blogger.comBlogger795125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-72404967436627815432017-01-17T23:49:00.001-06:002017-01-17T23:49:41.318-06:00Adventure Awaits <div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">I'll never forget the Thursday in November 2015 when we got the call. We had just arrived in Louisville, KY for a youth conference and were settling in for a lunch at the hotel when our doctor's office's phone number popped up on my phone. Finally! The test was really just a formality for the information I already knew - </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">It's a </span><span style="font-kerning: none; text-decoration: line-through;">girl </span><span style="font-kerning: none;">boy!</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Hold up, what?!</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">I couldn't even get the words out before the tears started coming - "I get to be a boy mom." (I wish I could put half an exclamation point there because I tried to be enthusiastic when I told Cody, but failed miserably.) Everything about our second pregnancy was so different, so we knew without question: it was a girl. While it definitely hit me harder than Cody, we both spent the next few days (and weeks and maybe months if I'm honest) mourning the life that we had pictured. My mom is my best friend and her mom is her best friend. It really shook me up to think that I might not ever have the chance to carry my best friend. All of a sudden I was starting fresh to "know" this baby I thought I already knew.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">It did take Cody and I a while to come up with a name that we both liked. Grayson, to be called Gray, was actually on the top of our list, but it was rising on the charts and just too popular for our tastes. Camp was one that kept coming up, but we weren't quite ready to make a commitment. At this point people were asking and offering suggestions and it was funny to hear what other people liked. The more we talked about it though, Campbell was the clear winner. While I never would be disciplined enough to wait until delivery day to have the ultimate surprise, it began to be a game to tell others - "No, we haven't decided yet." while knowing we had a secret just between us. There were actually a handful of people that I told the name too, but I knew that Camp would get a few "hummms" and I didn't want anyone to change how we felt about out. I have no doubt that Camp was and will forever be the adventure we weren't expecting. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">I'll never forget on the delivery day hearing my doctor say - "oh he's a big size!" (6 lbs 11 oz is a great size for almost 3 weeks early!) Hearing his first cries, seeing the underbite we worried about from sonograms, taking in every bit of our healthy boy and breathing a deep sigh of relief. I had a lot of fears and anxieties leading up to the delivery and I am grateful we were both healthy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">My heart was not prepared to be completely wrecked by a second boy. It’s true. Don’t take this as a “he’s my favorite” kinda thing (though the smells of a cuddly newborn sure do beat the smells of his brother’s summer feet!) It’s more about the fact that the picture of my life always held a family of four - Dad, Mom, Son, Daughter. And then this sweet, happy, chubby, brown hair, blue eyed, dimple cheeked boy shows up and changed every plan or picture I ever had for my life. The adventure he has had us on from the beginning of the thought of a second child has been one we will never forget and has changed our future for the better. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Cody and I love the church. It’s not perfect, but we love working there and serving families. There are things about us and how we live our life that we be different than some of our friends because we have said yes to God’s calling to ministry. (I know Griff, sometimes I want to sleep in on Sundays too!) I worry and I fret that someday, our boys might resent that which we love because of how it makes our lives different than others. Standing in front of our church committing Camp to the Lord comes with no guarantees or promises that he will believe in Jesus and live a safe life. It is our statement though, that we will parent him with open hands and bowed knees, dependent on the One who gave him to us. I know the dreams I have for him cannot even compare to what God has planned for his life. I can't wait to see it unfold. </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">It will wreck your heart in ways you never expect, but may you always be open to His adventure Camp! </span></div>
Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-57572396920614746182016-07-25T20:00:00.002-05:002016-07-25T20:02:18.445-05:00Currently:<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;">Currently, I'm...</span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><b style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px;">Listening</b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">... to </span></span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjr55fp8o_OAhWOpYMKHZh2AyQQFggeMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fknoxandjamie.com%2F&usg=AFQjCNEs_fjdoNREHt5jTE2j6vQ1Tv7skQ&sig2=nbAt7kWbg_otRZXmwRmvyA" style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px;">The Popcast</a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">. Yep... Cody has been trying to get me on the podcast bandwagon for years and I finally jumped on board. I also like The Big Boo Blog, Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey and God Centered Mom. Occasionally I'll listen to one of Cody's too, but I can't act like I enjoy those too much or it will go to his head. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Eating... </b>Nothing right now. I'm trying to exercise some discipline in my life and make smarter food choices. It's working... it's just also feels un-fun sometimes. Let's just say I've been on a free for all since we moved to Snyder (3 years ago cough cough) and am now paying for it. </span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Drinking... </b>Diet Dr. Pepper. Which may not be the healthiest of choices, but better than the root beer's I got addicted too after Camp was born! </span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><b style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px;">Wearing... </b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">My "All I need to today is coffee and a whole lot of Jesus" t-shirt. It was after 1 before I fell asleep and Camp had me up at 2, 4:45 and was ready to start the day at 7, so it seemed appropriate. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Feeling... </b>Like I *need* to take advantage of the Nordstrom Anniversary sale, yet not finding anything worth pulling the trigger for. How do people not get so overwhelmed while trying to shop the sale online? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br style="color: #333333; font-size: 15px;" /></span><b style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px;">Wanting... </b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;">Cooler weather. This Texas summer has felt extra brutal this year and I'm looking forward to fall weather. (Come quickly November!) </span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><b style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 15px;">Watching... </b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;">The Bachelorette. A friend went to college with James Taylor so I watched this season to cheer him on. I think Jordan has been the front runner from the beginning so I'm not even sure I need to finish out the season. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Enjoying... </b>Angry Birds POP! (hangs head in shame) The only games I really have on my phone are for Griffin, but they talked about this one on The Popcast the other day so I downloaded it. Cody saw me playing it and he got it too, so now I feel pressured to play good and stay ahead of him. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "utopia" , "palatino linotype" , "palatino" , serif; font-size: 15px;"></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Reading...</b></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 15px;"> Nothing currently, but I'm saving books up for a vacation in a few weeks. I plan on hitting up the library and checking out actual books. Have any good suggestions? </span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">What's are you currently doing? </span></span>Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-70123287140038203962016-05-29T23:02:00.002-05:002016-05-29T23:02:28.507-05:00Welcome Camp!Considering that our newest addition is now one month old, it's probably about time that I wrote something about his birth. I realize I haven't been a faithful blogger in years now, but I do love looking back at what I wrote for Griffin's day... mainly because I wouldn't remember otherwise!<br />
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Several months after I had Griffin I had a surgery to remove the very large fibroid in my uterus. We knew then that because of this surgery, any future children we had would be through a c-section. Here's more info than you care to know, but with a c-section, they cut into a fleshy part of your uterus, which is part of the reason you can try for a VBAC if you want. With my surgery, they actually cut into the muscle. The muscle is weakened then and they do not want you to get to the point where you might have contractions, otherwise it could cause your uterus to rupture. Yeah... I would like to avoid that too! All of that said, we knew going into this pregnancy that I would have a c-section. The "no-contraction" rule meant that I needed to deliver between 37-38 weeks and because of our work schedule, we asked sometime in January or February to nail down a date and were able to select a date that fit in that range... so April 28th it was!<br />
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I'm going to be honest, choosing a date is so awesome. Not only does it take out a lot of worries (though crazy pregnant lady hormones still worry about crazy water breaking scenarios) but it was so nice to "only" have to be pregnant until 37 weeks and miss those last three weeks. This pregnancy was much harder on me than Griffin's in so many ways and I'm not sure who would have been harmed in those last few days, but it would have been someone. (Let's be honest, probably Cody!) I was just done. DONE. Thursday, April 28th could not come soon enough.<br />
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We went to Lubbock the day before to have a "Big Brother Day!" for Griffin, which included jumping at Altitude, a trampoline park, lunch and ice cream at CFA and finally, our first trip to Chuck-E-Cheese! It really was a fun day for us to spend a last few moments as our little family of three.<br />
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Cody and I actually stayed the night in the hospital. They have a hotel floor for $25 a night... can't beat that price! I asked Cody to take one last bump picture but to make sure it was flattering. He of course went super silly with a few different shots and ended on this one- where the bed he was standing on almost rolled out from underneath him. It was hilarious and some tension relief we needed!<br />
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We were up bright and early then next morning to head to L&D at 5:30 to get prepped for surgery at 7:30. Apparently I was supposed to have orders for my c-section but I didn't, so it slowed things down a little bit. I was supposed to be back in the OR at 7, but it was actually closer to 8 before they wheeled me down. Honestly I wasn't afraid of having a c-section until this point, mostly because the nursing staff began to prep me for having a 37 week baby, which included a lot of emphasis on the "wimpy white boy syndrome" and problems breathing. I know it is good to be prepared, but it was a little bit of a downer right before going into the OR.<br />
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I know an emergency situation would be very different, but a planned c-section was so calm and relaxed. The nurses were joking with us and just chatting it up with the anesthesiologist and my OB. They took me back first to get the spinal in place, which was just a trip. It is so crazy to almost instantly not be able to feel your legs, only to feel tingling. Once that was set and I had been cleaned and sterilized, they brought Cody in. While chatting with the nurse, she asked if we had a name picked out yet. It was so strange to actually be able to say it out loud after keeping it a secret for 4+ months. Turns out that my OB has a daughter with the same name we picked, which was a funny coincidence! Things went pretty quick from here. Cody was brave and watched once it was time (though I teased with him to make sure he wasn't going to pass out, as they told us if the dad passes out, he had to be taken to the ER, which was located at a hospital branch across town!) At 8:30 a.m. on the dot, Campbell "Camp" Rinn came into the world at 6 lbs 11 oz and 20 inches long! He seemed so tiny to us, but everyone was pleased with his size for a 37 week baby. Luckily there was no wimpy white boy to be found. He was quite the stud from the beginning. (nurse's words!) I was able to do skin to skin in the OR and then taken to recovery. We expected to be there two hours, but the spinal wore off quicker than that and we were all doing so well they went ahead and wheeled us back to our room.<br />
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More to come!Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-48960752702976272492015-12-29T22:57:00.001-06:002015-12-29T22:57:38.512-06:00Half Way <div style="text-align: center;">
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Considering that we're now half way through this pregnancy, I guess it's about time I actually blog about it, huh? </div>
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We were overwhelmed with joy to find out at the beginning of September that our prayers for growing our family were finally answered with a YES! We also consider ourselves very lucky that our first round of fertility treatments worked. I know that is not always the case and I don't take it for granted. I hope to eventually get back into the habit of blogging so this second child doesn't feel so second child-ish, but I can't promise how regular it will be! </div>
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Here's a recap of how the pregnancy has gone so far:</div>
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6 weeks on the dot: hello evening sickness! up until this point I had been in the "I know I'm pregnant but don't feel like it so is this really real stage?" This was quickly shattered. I went from feeling great/normal to feeling terrible in the days and getting sick at night. This is basically how I would sum up weeks 6 - 11. One of our church ladies told my mom she was worried about me because we work so hard and I'm looking so gray. Yeah... that's just me trying to keep it together and not get sick at church! Cooking was no fun and mostly everything I made made me feel sick. Fruit helped, but still made me feel sick. I craved orange juice but always paid for it. Want to know the only things I could eat without feeling sick right after? Peanut M and M's and Allsup's burritos. I know. It's amazing I didn't pile on the pounds during these weeks! (we were also going through a budget crunch and only using cash for eating out, so it did limit the burrito intake!) </div>
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I brushed my teeth constantly. Anything I ate or drank left a funny metal taste in my mouth that made me want to be sick. I could hardly drink a Diet Dr Pepper and really only drank ice cold water. Considering DDP ruins through my veins, this is how Cody knew things were bad! (that and the fact that I frequently told him, "I feel so terrible. We're never having any more kids after this. I can't handle it!") I was so tired every night yet also struggled with some insomnia. (Unisom is safe to take and a lifesaver for that!) I actually started feeling movement around 12 weeks. I know, crazy, but true. Basically anything about this pregnancy that could be different from Griffin's, was! I kept hoping the second trimester would provide some relief from the sickness. While it did ease up some, it was really 16 weeks before I finally started feeling like myself again. I still have to watch myself to make sure I don't overdo it, it's been nice to finally have some energy back to tackle some things that have basically been abandoned since September. Griffin and Cody are both still alive and thriving, so we'll call it an overall success, right? :) </div>
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Given that everything has been different about this pregnancy, Cody and I would have both put good money on the fact that it was going to be a girl. We did the Progenity blood test around 13 weeks and found out while we were in Louisville for a youth worker's conference that... </div>
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Needless to say, we were shocked! It was a little bit of an adjustment in our (mostly my!) thinking at first, but we are thankful to have a healthy baby and I'm preparing for lots of Star Wars and sports in my future! Cody and I both agree it's hard not to picture a Griffin clone, so we're excited to see what he will look like. Considering all I hear is how G is a copy of Cody, I'm hoping he will be mine! We are seeing a Maternal Fetal specialist every time I also see my OB, so I'm hoping we might get a closer view soon of his face to try and make predications! I'm sure there's much more I should include, but at least that's a little bit of a catch up for someday when I try to remember this pregnancy! </div>
Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-61069457270377474352015-10-02T22:06:00.001-05:002015-10-02T22:06:40.889-05:00Weekend ShenanigansI realize for most people, Friday is a day of celebration because the weekend is about to begin. When you're a minister, Sundays are a day of work and not for rest, so our weekend starts Thursday night.<br />
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It started off with some problem solving for Mom. Griff found his pumpkin shirt last week and wore it Tuesday to school, and then had a fit when he couldn't also wear it Wednesday and Thursday. I'm afraid this could become a weekly battle, so we headed out early this morning to Walmart to look for new pumpkin shirts. Sadly ours didn't have any, but did at least have several plain orange shirts so we can then have a painting party to solve our pumpkin shirt problems. </div>
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I've got to be honest: I was amazed at how good of a painter he was, both left and right handed! I found stencils for faces online, traced them on freezer paper, then cut out the faces and ironed them down. (placing another sheet of freezer paper wax side up inside of the shirt helps to seal it off so the paint won't bleed.) We now have five pumpkin shirts ready to go for October. Let's hope it's enough!</div>
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After a picnic lunch out of our lunch box and a long nap, we were at it again to make Halloween cupcakes. It's amazing that Griff can actually help with things now... there are some perks to him growing up! </div>
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Griff demonstrating proper safety precautions for sprinkle application and a "less is more" approach. </div>
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He was very proud of his finished product and we all enjoyed his hard work! Funny enough, this morning about 11:30 Cody asked, "What did we used to do on weekends before we had a kid?" I answered, "Sleep in till 10:45, dash to Whataburger before 11 to get breakfast, go home to nap, go out again to eat dinner, wander the mall then catch a movie. Weren't those the days? Now look at what all we've done and <i>it's only 11:30.</i>" Good thing we love this kid! :) </div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-89527816226908147832015-10-01T19:30:00.001-05:002015-10-01T19:30:26.253-05:00Hits and Misses (Dinner Style) I'll be honest, most of our dinners around here become frequent repeats of our favorites (or items that certainly aren't instagram or blog worthy, like how many lunchables my son can eat in one week) but I did try a new one the other night that was a great meal and one we will make again.<br />
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(I don't know why pinterest has to make things so complicated. Remember back in the easy days when you could just embed a pin on your blog? Sigh.) <br />
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<a data-pin-board-width="400" data-pin-do="embedBoard" data-pin-scale-height="200" data-pin-scale-width="80" href="https://www.pinterest.com/abbynein/recipes/"> Follow Abby Neinast's board Recipes on Pinterest.</a><!-- Please call pinit.js only once per page --><script async="" src="//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js" type="text/javascript"></script> </div>
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I tried this <a href="http://www.yellowblissroad.com/31-days-of-simply-homemade-day-1/">Hamburger Soup</a> (seen above in the top left hand corner) and it was delicious! Here's the recipe from her site:<br />
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Ingredients</div>
<ul id="zlrecipe-ingredients-list" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #454545; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: none; margin: 1em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 2.4em; vertical-align: baseline;">
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-0" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1 Tbls Olive Oil</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-1" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1/2 a med sized onion, chopped</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-2" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">2 Tbls minced garlic</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-3" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1 lb ground beef</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-4" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1 can condensed tomato soup, plus 1 can water</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-5" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">2-14 oz. cans beef broth</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-6" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1 cup of corn or other canned/frozen veggies</li>
<li class="ingredient" id="zlrecipe-ingredient-7" itemprop="ingredients" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">1 cup uncooked small pasta</li>
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Instructions</div>
<ol class="instructions" id="zlrecipe-instructions-list" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #454545; font-family: lato, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5em; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0px 0.5em; padding: 0px 0px 0px 3em; vertical-align: baseline;">
<li class="instruction" id="zlrecipe-instruction-0" itemprop="recipeInstructions" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Heat olive oil in a skillet.</li>
<li class="instruction" id="zlrecipe-instruction-1" itemprop="recipeInstructions" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Add onion and garlic and stir until the onions are just soft.</li>
<li class="instruction" id="zlrecipe-instruction-2" itemprop="recipeInstructions" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Add ground beef, season with salt and pepper and cook until meat is longer pink. Drain.</li>
<li class="instruction" id="zlrecipe-instruction-3" itemprop="recipeInstructions" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Meanwhile, in a five quart soup pot, pour in beef broth, tomato soup and water. Bring to a boil, turn down heat to medium and add the ground beef and corn.</li>
<li class="instruction" id="zlrecipe-instruction-4" itemprop="recipeInstructions" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Add the pasta and veggies and cook pasta to al dente.</li>
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<span style="color: #454545; font-family: lato, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">The only changes I made were to add 2 cups of pasta (instead of one to make it a little more hearty) and to also add a can of green beans. Griff loves green beans, so he had no problems with adding them in. Cody claimed this was like a healthier hamburger helper (and he meant it as a compliment!) It made quite a bit and I was able to break it up into leftovers and 2 containers to freeze. I think this will be a staple for the fall and winter!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #454545; font-family: lato, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">Now on to the miss... One big adjustment we made when we first moved to our small town was that it only had United for a grocery store. It took me a while to get used to not having as much available to us and paying more for it all. Eventually our Super Walmart opened up and now I do most of my shopping there, but I do still return to United because you can't beat their meat sales. They frequently do buy one get one free on chicken, ground turkey and pork chops so I like to stock us up on those. (see above: frequent repeats!) I happened to notice that country style ribs were on sale a few weeks ago and decided to pick some up to have for dinners. Of course, they were cheap, so I bought a lot to freeze, not considering that I don't actually know how to cook them. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #454545; font-family: lato, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">Yep. Turns out its a different type of rib that I was picturing. Most of the recipes I found on pinterest were all for bbq ribs, but I wasn't in the mood for that. I ended up seasoning them and cooking them for a few hours in the crockpot and serving bbq on the side for the boys. The house smelled good, but sadly they were just meh. I totally think it had to do more with my cooking that with the actual meat, but Cody and I finished that night saying, "Well, that was a dinner." Because there wasn't much else good to say about it. I've learned my lesson about buying in bulk items you haven't actually cooked before!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #454545; font-family: lato, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">Anyone have any tips on cooking country style ribs for me? I've got a lot to practice on! </span></span></div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-84378581913333132222015-09-30T22:20:00.000-05:002015-09-30T22:20:32.969-05:00Silly Boy. <div style="text-align: center;">
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This boy keeps us on our toes and makes us laugh every day. Funny enough, I was saying a prayer the other day that three hadn't been as hard to us as everyone had prepared us for. Yep.... and then we hit a new day! Ha! While Griff is mostly sweet (and luckily we're still hearing good things from his teachers and Sunday School workers) he is very independent and expresses his opinions quite frequently! Here's some silly things he's been up to lately:</div>
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He likes to accessorize and wants you to too. He even requested on wearing this headband to bed that night! </div>
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Sunday he required me to call him Pluto all morning as he was crawling around the house, barking like a dog. We were trying to rush out the door to get to church and I was telling Kota to go tee tee, when Griff ran outside and said, "Puppies have to tee tee outside!" This was too great of a shot to pass up :)</div>
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He is obsessed with minions and received this minion towel for his birthday. We'e been using it as a towel for a while now, but somehow on Monday night he got the idea in his head that it was a blanket. So he cried when he couldn't take it to bed (you know, because it was wet!!!) so we compromised and said he could have it first thing Tuesday morning. He, of course, didn't forget and ran right in to cuddle under his blanket when he woke up! </div>
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We are trying to foster some independence in him and have been making him get himself dressed. This has lead to him now picking out his clothes - shirt, shorts, undies and socks. He has an opinion on it all! So, he wore his pumpkin shirt on Tuesday in preparation for Bami's Pumpkin Party. (Yes, he asked if we were headed to the party when I picked him up from school!) When he woke up this morning, he wanted to wear the same shirt AND shorts again to school. It took a little while to convince him that we can't wear the same clothes two days in a row. Back to the drawing board for his shirt... and we ended up going to school like this! </div>
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Luckily he was willing to compromise and at least took tennis shoes to wear for when they went outdoors.</div>
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And finally, the nursery workers snapped this picture of G Force and Hurricane Henry tonight. (I do think she asked for a mean face.) I have a feeling these two are going to be giving a lot of church workers a run for their money!! </div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-68490274589812559912015-09-18T22:43:00.000-05:002015-09-18T22:43:00.454-05:00Friday Favorites1. I've read their blogs for years, but it took me a while to follow along with the podcast too. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-big-boo-cast/id262921699?mt=2">The Big Boo podcast</a> has become my favorite for car rides to make the time pass quickly. (Or the weekly grocery store run!) It really is just like listening in on a friend's conversation. When it delves into some of the football stuff I zone out a bit, but if you enjoy laughing with girlfriends, I think you'll enjoy it!<br />
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2. The Good Wife. I started this tv show as a recommendation from Big Mama on the podcast and it is now how I pass my time when I'm cleaning the kitchen or folding laundry. If you like to binge watch tv, be warned: it's addicting!<br />
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3. Amazon Prime's newest updates. If you haven't realized it yet, with the free streaming tv and movies on Amazon Prime, the latest update allows you to download the shows onto your devices and then you have up to 48 hours to watch them. This is perfect for when you're taking a family trip with a 2 hour drive. Cody puts on his podcast, G is watching his movies and I can get two episodes in of The Good Wife before we arrive. Let's just say that it might be one of the first trips home that I didn't sleep through!<br />
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4. <a href="http://www.sallyhansen.com/nails/nail-color/gel-nail-color/miracle-gel">Sally Hansen Miracle Gel</a>. I used this for this first time this summer and it has quickly gone to the top of my most used polishes. I love it because it dries very quickly and is durable. I might even like it more than OPI polish, which I didn't think I would ever say. Your first purchase will be a little more expensive to get the top coat too, but it's worth it!<br />
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What are some of your favorites I need to know about?Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-2628743363314574272015-08-12T23:14:00.000-05:002015-08-12T23:14:05.814-05:00The Big House. After quite the full summer, we decided to hit the road and enjoy a relaxing week up in Ruidoso at the Big House. We knew going into it that the supposed 5 hour car trip would take a little bit longer with our travel companion, so we just gave into that and made a day out of it. We stopped to eat and check out my brother's family's new house.<br />
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Griff wasn't too impressed with the house because he didn't understand why Jax and his toys weren't there. Next time buddy! We hit the road again and stopped in Roswell to wander Target and grab a snack. Griff chose a well balanced diet of Target popcorn and Cheetos. Funny enough, he wouldn't let us open them until we made it to the Big House! I couldn't believe his determination. He must get that from me and his looks from his dad :)<br />
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We told him he could either nap in the car and play when we get to the Big House, or stay away in the car and nap at the Big House. He instantly put his thumb in his mouth, grabbed his pillow and closed his eyes and was out. I watched him in amazement and realized that our next kid is probably going to never sleep!<br />
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Our days at the Big House were lazy, full of good food and fun family time. Griffin Scout got to ride his first pony, Scout.<br />
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Please note the shark shorts and mcqueen shirt, both new gifts from Bami from the thrift store. It seems as if he will be a trend setter some day!<br />
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Cornerstone Bakery is a must with kids in Ruidoso. They give you dough to play with and Griff was entertained for a full hour. It was almost like we were there by ourselves! Be warned, they are covered in flour after it's over!<br />
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We also went putt putting and go karting. Griff definitely had the right strategy for putt putt- hit it once, then pick it up and put it down beside the hole, then hit it in for par. Mulligan as many times as needed ;)<br />
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We were actually considering passing on the go karts because of the cost and not totally being sure if he would enjoy it, but a family was ready to go and gave us 4 tickets, which was perfect for us to do two go kart rides. I don't know why we worried about it either, as G Man loved getting to be a crazy driver!<br />
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We finished out our trip by stopping at the waterpark in Brownfield on the way home. This was really our first family vacation now that G actually knows what's going on. He did great in the car both ways and didn't have any accidents, which now makes us officially potty trained and is the cherry on top to finish out our summer! Ruidoso spoiled us with high's in the mid 70's and rain most days, so it's been extra brutal to come home to 100+ degree days. Cody and I both agree that we wouldn't mind if FBC Ruidoso calls him to be a pastor someday when we're closer to retirement! Thanks to Bamps and Bami for letting us use the Big House and Noni & Boots for letting us crash part of your vacation!<br />
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<br />Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-37756502113252072172015-07-15T22:45:00.000-05:002015-07-20T12:12:27.903-05:00Is It August Yet?<div style="text-align: center;">
Cody and I could be the only people who are ready for August to be here, because that means we survived our summer. I thought that summer's were busy with a youth minister husband, and then I became a children's minister and it only got busier. We've survived VBS, Jr. High and High School camps and now I have children's camps next week and then we will celebrate! Don't get me wrong, we've had some great weeks and loved getting to see our kids experience Christ, but it wears you out when you feel responsible for the safety of other people's kids! (plus, I don't feel old enough to be the sponsor yet!)</div>
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Our High School camp was held in Glorieta, New Mexico, which used to be a rather popular location to have church cabins until the land sold recently. I was happy to see that my hometown's church's cabin is still standing and our girl councilor was actually living in it (with 36 other girls! glad it wasn't me! :)</div>
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Camp at Glorieta was much more outdoorsy than I was prepared for, but we all ended up having a great time and dare I say, even enjoyed the outdoorsy activities! (Feel free to stop reading now if you don't want to see pictures of me doing said outdoorsy stuff! Videos won't work... maybe some day I'll update this with them!)</div>
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We drift triked:</div>
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I didn't know it, but drifting is apparently the process of making yourself slide sideways. I was a scaredy cat the first time, but showed the boys up the second ;)</div>
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We did the Zip Drop:</div>
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Our cute group getting ready to go!</div>
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We'll be jumping off of this:</div>
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Which for two sissies, looked like this:</div>
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(wah wah wah... picture two sissy's jumping off!)</div>
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What you can't see is where the other two people on the Zip Drop had already jumped off on the count of three, but Cody and I were frozen up there. Some of our group thought we planned it that way so just the two of us went together... but no, we were just scared! It took a huge moment of courage for me to jump, which is why you see me so happy to be back on the ground!</div>
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We did a lot of hiking in the beautiful mountains:</div>
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And we also pretended to be movie stars by braving the Stunt Jump. As you can see, they won't be hiring me as a double any time soon! I was the first chicken to make the jump (no need to tell you how long it took!) but I inspired Cody and our other sponsor Marie to make the jump too!</div>
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(pretend you see a superstar jumping off a 20 ft ledge onto a blow up landing)</div>
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All in all it was a great week, but we're glad to be home with our boy and seriously are looking forward to a little bit of a slower pace in August! I head out today for one last week of camp, which is actually pre-teen camp (monday - thursday) and children's camp (thursday and friday) combined. Yep... we'll pretty much pull into the parking lot, empty the bus, load back up and leave again. Not sure why I was feeling so ambitious when I made these plans!! I know it will be a great week, but I'm ready for Friday already! ;) </div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-5949476753753204792015-05-17T21:54:00.001-05:002015-05-17T21:58:28.241-05:00Senior Sunday 2030<div style="text-align: center;">
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am i the only mom who was weepy this morning during senior sunday? cody had them play a video [of children i didn't even know mind you!] of kids growing up from toddlers to graduates and i felt like i was watching griff grow up in front of me. the days are long but the years are short and soon enough it will be our senior sunday. </div>
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luckily, i came home to this silly boy who kept me laughing all day. "i lub your shoes momma!" </div>
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plus, don't you think these will be gems in his senior slideshow? </div>
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(i don't know why this video is so tiny. click the four arrows at the bottom right hand to see it bigger mom ;) </div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-65514861796376686722015-05-09T22:50:00.000-05:002015-05-09T22:50:49.562-05:00Six on Saturday [griffin style][one] <br />
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a few weeks ago we took griffin to his first movie to see HOME. as you can see, he could hardly take his eyes off of the screen to say cheese. luckily it was a crowd of mostly kids so any noises he made didn't matter, though he mostly only said, "more popcorn please!" cody and I are already looking forward to a few more movie nights this summer!<br />
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griff got some new summer shoes, but we're still trying to teach him that sandals don't require socks. he makes it look pretty cute though!<br />
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we've stepped our toes into the world of potty training and it's going ok. he does mostly good at home with us, but won't go on the potty at school. I am a bribing mom, so every day he goes I remind him - "if you go tee-tee or poo-poo on the potty at school we can get ice cream!" ice cream is a great motivator too :)<br />
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[four]<br />
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you can tell we've been talking a little too much about potty training. I went to go use the bathroom the other day and Griff walked up to me and said "push hard momma!"<br />
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[we stress every day with G to keep his undies clean and dry]<br />
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a few days later he saw a pair of his socks on the floor and said they were yucky. I explained it was clean laundry that we needed to put up and he said "clean and dry! clean and dry!"<br />
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[five]<br />
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one day at school was "wacky hair wednesday." considering that G has crazy hair most days, Cody went with something different - the tri hawk. Personally, I thick he looks like he's ready to star in Dumb and Dumber Three!<br />
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[six]<br />
our latest obsession: minions.<br />
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he'd make a pretty cute minion to me!<br />
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<br />Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-88279580339830335032015-04-27T23:08:00.001-05:002015-04-27T23:08:51.877-05:00 Faithfulness <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>well hey there blog friends. it's been a long time since anything of much worth has been posted around these parts. there have been things on my heart this past year and a half that haven't been right to share, but i'm feeling that now is the time to start opening up. it's long, but hopefully worth it. i'm hoping to be back more regularly now, though this shouldn't be the only topic I cover. i'm grateful for this space and for you!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Have you had a season where God continues to put a message on your heart? I'm sure if I went back and read past journals and even this blog I would be able to seem the themes that He has given to me to carry me through different seasons. And even though I'm not out of this season yet, I want to document it before I move on. </span><br />
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hope. </span><br />
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faithfulness.</span><br />
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miraculous. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">breaking down walls. </span><br />
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These are the phrases that keep coming up on our Wednesday and Sunday morning lessons. For the teaching I do with the children, we take a theme to study for the whole month and break it down into different lessons each week. Spring break and bad weather caused our March month to be off, so we were finally ready to start our April lessons, on the last Wednesday night of the month! Our new element for this month is "FAITHFULNESS." [standing firm with God by keeping our promises to Him and others.] </span><br />
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I hadn't done much prep work before and in some real honesty, I wasn't feeling very faithful Tuesday night. In fact, I wrote something in my prayer journal along the lines of <b>"Why have you abandoned me? Why haven't you answered my prayers yet? Am I not faithful enough? Do I not trust you enough? Do I not love you enough? I feel forgotten God." </b>Not pretty, I know. </span><br />
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I went to work on Wednesday feeling beaten down. Unfortunately, that's not reason enough to cancel our services so I set out to get everything ready for that night. I piddled away, planning out games, music, snacks and crafts and all that was left was to finalize the lesson. The Big Idea of of Faithfulness we were looking at was "We can trust God to keep His promises." and our Scripture for the night focused on the Israelites being brought out of Egypt and the land of slavery, yet ending up being backed up against the Red Sea as the Egyptian army chased after them. Typically, our lessons use a scripture to support one idea. For instance, last month we talked about integrity. One week's focus was "integrity is not always an easy choice" and we looked at the story of Shadrach, Mescach and Abednego. This week's lesson was a different style and used portions of scripture to prove a small point about faithfulness. Here's what they are:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="text Exod-13-17" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"> </span>When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1885AC" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1885AC" title="See cross-reference AC">AC</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span class="text Exod-13-18" id="en-NIV-1886" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"> </span>So God led<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1886AD" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1886AD" title="See cross-reference AD">AD</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle...</span><span class="text Exod-13-21" id="en-NIV-1889" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"> </span>By day the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> went ahead<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1889AJ" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1889AJ" title="See cross-reference AJ">AJ</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> of them in a pillar of cloud<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1889AK" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1889AK" title="See cross-reference AK">AK</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span class="text Exod-13-22" id="en-NIV-1890" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"> </span>Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1890AL" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1890AL" title="See cross-reference AL">AL</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> its place in front of the people.</span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">[exodus 13: 17-18; 21-22] </span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Faithfulness Fact #1 -</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God knows where to lead us, and He will lead us to safety and His blessing.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God knew His people weren’t very strong and might decide to return to Egypt if they had to fight another country right away. <span style="line-height: 24px;">If we trust God to lead us, we have to trust the direction He takes us. Do you think the Israelites wondered why they were going the "long way?" They grumbled and complained a lot on their journey to the Promise Land, so it's not hard to imagine them doing so from the start. If we say we trust God to keep His promises to us, we can't bail out on His plan as soon as it gets uncomfortable. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">To help the people understand His faithfulness and to see it every day and night, God even had them follow a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. There was never a moment when the Israelites were alone. God made Himself plain to see every step of the way. He is visible to us every day too, if we only slow down long enough to see Him. </span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Faithfulness Fact #2 -</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God is never surprised by anything that happens to us; He already has prepared a way to help us out. We just have to keep our trust in Him. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="text Exod-14-5" id="en-NIV-1895" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;">When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled,<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1895G" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1895G" title="See cross-reference G">G</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1895H" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1895H" title="See cross-reference H">H</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!”</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span class="text Exod-14-6" id="en-NIV-1896" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;">So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him.</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span class="text Exod-14-7" id="en-NIV-1897" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;">He took six hundred of the best chariots,<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1897I" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1897I" title="See cross-reference I">I</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them.</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">[exodus 14:5-7]</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before long, the Egyptians caught up with the Israelites as </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">they camped by the sea. The </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">faith of the Israelites fell to </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">pieces and they became so scared they cried out against</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moses and God. In Exodus 14:11 they asked Moses, “Was </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">us out here to the desert to die?” They were so upset with </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moses and God they even said in Exodus 14:12, “We told you </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">to leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians. It would have </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">desert!”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even in the middle of all the terror and complaining, one </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">man stood firm and continued to trust in God: Moses! He</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> was God’s chosen leader for the Israelites, the one who had </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">gone before Pharaoh at the time of each plague. Moses </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">had seen the power of God and it had changed him forever. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He knew our Big Idea of the Day was the truth. He knew </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">they could trust God to keep His promises.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="text Exod-14-13" id="en-NIV-1903" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"> </span>Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid.<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1903S" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1903S" title="See cross-reference S">S</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> Stand firm and you will see<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1903T" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1903T" title="See cross-reference T">T</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> the deliverance the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see <span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1903U" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1903U" title="See cross-reference U">U</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span>again.</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"> </span><span class="text Exod-14-14" id="en-NIV-1904" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;">The <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> will fight<span class="crossreference" data-cr="#cen-NIV-1904V" data-link="(<a href="#cen-NIV-1904V" title="See cross-reference V">V</a>)" style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"></span> for you; you need only to be still.”</span></span><br />
<span class="text Exod-14-14" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">[exodus 14:13-14]</span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Faithfulness Fact #3- </span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God will keep his Promises to us in miraculous ways. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When they made the great choice to trust God, a miracle occurred! At the moment things looked so awful, so hopeless, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">but then God told Moses to stretch out his staff over the sea. When Moses obeyed, God caused a mighty east wind to turn back the water and make the land beneath dry, so the Israelites could pass over the sea. All night long, the waters were turned back and the Israelites began to cross to the other side. The Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">we need to remember we find God’s power when we stand still and trust Him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't know what my children got out of the lesson, but I fully believe it was a lesson just for me. <i>we need to remember we find God’s power when we stand still and trust Him. </i> Standing still and trusting Him is where I begin to struggle. Instead, I'd rather try to control everything in my power and spend my days obsessing if things are going to go in my favor this month. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Almost a year and a half ago Cody and I decided we were ready for our family to grow again. Even typing that I want to laugh, because we can decide all we want, but that doesn't mean it's actually going to happen. Instead, it feels like we are walking the "long way." And if I think having another baby is to be my "Promised Land," I would make a mighty fine Israelite because I am complaining and grumbling along the way. In fact, God would probably describe me as a whiney toddler right now with the amount of "Why's?" I have thrown His way. It's a weird place we sit in - we do have a child already so obviously it was possible for us, but yet, it's taking so long to happen it's hard to ignore some of the questions that pop up in my head. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's the question I have the hardest time with: <i>why are you silent God? </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For as much as I've prayed and asked for wisdom and guidance about our family [is it not the right time? is there something wrong with me? are we supposed to see a specialist? are we supposed to be pursuing adoption and that's why we're not getting pregnant?] God is remaining silent. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm thankful that He is at least the strong silent type. Even though He hasn't spoken the right direction to us yet, His presence has still been felt. I know without a doubt that my faith, though sometimes feeling small and weak, is stronger than it would have been right now had I quickly gotten pregnant like I originally planned. I know that God has us on the long way for a reason and He is not surprised by this timing. I do feel like the desire in my heart for more children is a promise that He will someday fulfill and when that day comes, it will be miraculous, maybe even as big as the parting of the Red Sea. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sunday during our small group with the youth group we talked about the <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Joshua%205:13-6:27">Battle of Jericho</a>. I imagine they must have felt rather silly trying to take down a mighty wall by WALKING, but they did what the Lord commanded them to do. 13 times they end up walking around the city followed by shouting for the Lord and the walls came tumbling down. Trying unsuccessfully for a baby feels like a wall we will never be able to break down. Would you join me in walking? We would love your prayers as we navigate how to step forward from here. Please know that I'm also willing to talk in person about this, but if you ask Cody any questions, he might get a little awkward on you! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><br /></span></span>Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-60198637625676885522015-03-19T16:48:00.000-05:002015-03-19T16:48:27.984-05:00Easter Sale - 2015<div style="text-align: center;">
this year, choose a gift for your family that will keep giving all year long. </div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16679353778" title="DSC_0991 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0991" height="431" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8731/16679353778_3856179e98_z.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16865494722" title="easter-sale2015 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="easter-sale2015" height="288" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8638/16865494722_2840600722_o.png" width="504" /></a></div>
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usps takes about 2-3 days to deliver these, so make sure the easter bunny knows to order them in time :) </div>
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head over the the <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/170979417/52-verses-every-family-should-know?ref=listings_manager_grid">etsy shop</a> to get yours. may your family be blessed! </div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-47529120185926865082015-02-27T17:09:00.001-06:002015-02-27T17:18:14.015-06:00Grandma's Chocolate CakeGriff and I ended up taking a last minute trip to the panhandle last weekend to have a chance to see my grandmother again. She's been in and out of the hospital for several months now and just hasn't been able to get fully well. I am so thankful we ended up going, as she has taken a turn for worse and is being moved into hospice today. While we wanted her to be comfortable and without pain, you're just never ready to say goodbye.<br />
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When I think about my grandmother, I think about:<br />
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Cousin's Week<br />
- hosting all eleven grandkids for a week of fun! my token cousin's week is when I was around 10 years old and when my mom came to pick us up, I bragged that I hadn't brushed my hair all week! (this is back when it was long and thick... it was a rat's nest! no rules at grandma's house though!) we always had matching shirts, made play dough and bubbles, slept in the garage [in the summer, in texas! how did we survive that heat??] and even braved palo duro canyon to camp outdoors! sometimes, when i'm exhausted after a long day with only one toddler, I can't imagine how they had the energy to entertain us all week!<br />
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Puppets<br />
- my grandmother had an amazing puppet ministry. I can't even tell you the countless shows she put on across the state and in Brazil. Lee Greenwood's "I'm Proud To Be An American" is a song that makes me think of my brother and her, because she always did a performance to it. As a young child, having a puppeteer grandmother was basically the equivalence of being related to a celebrity ;)<br />
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Games<br />
-Lots and lots and lots of games! My grandparents loved to play games and I am so grateful that she kept quite the social circle with her games after he passed away. I actually can't tell you the last time I beat her in a game of Wahoo either!<br />
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Chocolate Sheet Cake<br />
- Oh, Grandma's chocolate sheet cake! This will forever go down as my top dessert. It's so perfect. It doesn't matter how full I am, what time of day it is or the diet I'm on, I can't turn down her chocolate sheet cake. Grandma knows my love for it and up until her health starting failing, every time I came to visit her she had my own 9x9 pan that she was pulling fresh out on the oven. I am so grateful that almost 7 years ago for a wedding present, I had a family friend that put together a recipe book for me and had family members contribute some of their favorites. I don't have many from Grandma, but she knew what I would want.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16665030881" title="IMG_2236.JPG by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_2236.JPG" height="480" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8571/16665030881_667f8eeef1_z.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Our family would appreciate your prayers right now. Though we are preparing for a lot of grief, I think we'll make her chocolate cake this weekend and celebrate the blessing she is to us!Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-59778847763921211562015-02-26T21:56:00.000-06:002015-02-26T21:56:22.079-06:00A Good Day<div style="text-align: center;">
if i had to guess</div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16659265655" title="DSC_0980 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0980" height="334" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8635/16659265655_64cc4af7fb.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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that griffin had</div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16471693898" title="DSC_0982 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0982" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8573/16471693898_9cd12de14e.jpg" width="334" /></a></div>
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a very </div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16659269795" title="A Good Day by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="A Good Day" height="334" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8616/16659269795_63679f9817.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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very </div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16471865930" title="DSC_0986 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0986" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8615/16471865930_217e93062c.jpg" width="334" /></a></div>
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good</div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16658248612" title="DSC_0987 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0987" height="334" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8574/16658248612_efb73e1092.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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day.</div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16471859580" title="A Good Day by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="A Good Day" height="334" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8570/16471859580_0398395cdf.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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don't you agree?</div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16471688018" title="A Good Day by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="A Good Day" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8563/16471688018_2f746db0b6.jpg" width="334" /></a></div>
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[no mom tears were shed in the making of this day. just good ole fashioned cupcake eating, marker drawing, baking powder measuring fun!] </div>
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Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-67175006369914126342015-02-25T11:19:00.000-06:002015-02-25T11:20:24.904-06:00Books Of The Bible Rap LyricsAs a part of our Wednesday night children's activities, we had a very generous donation made to our ministry to purchase 45 Bibles so that each student would have one to use during our lesson. It also helps that we're all using the same one, which makes it slightly easier for me to tell the kids where they need to be for our lesson that night. Despite the help that I try and give them on where to go, I've noticed that most of our kids don't know the books of the Bible. Heck, I myself am guilty of knowing generalized areas, but some books take me a while to find! For Lent this year I challenged our students (and myself!) to learn all 66 books before Easter. We're using <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4KEWLNnmCQ">this great rap</a> I found on Youtube from North Point Kids.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/g4KEWLNnmCQ" width="560"></iframe></div>
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After showing them the rap last week, I sat out to find the lyrics so they could read it as the song was playing. If they are online somewhere, I couldn't find them so I typed them up for the kids today and wanted to share them online in case anyone else needs them. (Or if you want to challenge yourself to learn the books too!)<br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/19EAhSTmkw4HLX3lFiIgvYa4-85mlWfY3OW5fh9GSMTM/edit?usp=sharing">Here</a> is the link to the lyrics. Enjoy!<br />
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these are the books of the Bible when we read them it makes us stronger and we learn about our heavenly father when we read all the books of the Bible....<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16025542443" title="BooksOfTheBible by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="BooksOfTheBible" height="240" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8671/16025542443_84968e45cf_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8113256831181539701" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8113256831181539701" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a>Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-7285039562502265102015-02-13T08:00:00.000-06:002015-02-13T08:00:02.864-06:00Friday Favorites: Griffin QuotesMomma I carry you?<br />
[when he wants to be picked up]<br />
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Castle! Castle!<br />
[pointing to shoe, wanting me to get the sand out]<br />
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praying:<br />
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dear JESUSSSSSS.<br />
THANK YOOOOOOOUU.<br />
DAY.<br />
THANK YOOOOOOOUU.<br />
moMMA<br />
daDDY<br />
KODABEAR<br />
help me<br />
SLEEEEEEEEP.<br />
night night.<br />
love you.<br />
AMEN.<br />
[because yelling helps the prayers to get through.]<br />
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<br />
Heart? Heart?<br />
[when requesting to sing "Down In My Heart"]<br />
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No get me. No get me Daddy.<br />
[when running off to start a game of chase.]<br />
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---------------------------------------------<br />
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Ka-chow!<br />
[after every picture.]<br />
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No happy birday Daddy. Happy Birday Me!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16327699148" title="IMG_2079.JPG by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_2079.JPG" height="640" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8676/16327699148_2b65922719_z.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-2102929666472258092015-02-05T09:30:00.000-06:002015-02-05T09:30:01.057-06:00Do You Want To Build A Snowman? Back in December I hosted a simple "Do You Want To Build A Snowman?" party for a few of Griffin's friends. It sounds much fancier than it was, as it was just a glorified playdate so the moms could get together and have coffee!<br />
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I created an invitation using PicMonkey and texted it to everyone.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16398808886" title="snowman by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="snowman" height="495" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8602/16398808886_bc7cdbcc49_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Simple snacks for the kids [cookies, powdered sugar donuts, donut holes, and little smokies to balance out the sugar high!] A coffee station for the moms and snowman treats as goodie bags. [which I forgot to hand out and Griff is still playing with!]<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16237140508" title="snowman1 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="snowman1" height="160" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8622/16237140508_9a14953028_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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The "snowman" was based off of this <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/193795590191322527/">pin</a> I'd seen a while back. I think in theory, it's made by older kids who could cut out all of their own eyes, mouth and nose pieces. Our oldest kid attending was four and while she might have been able to do it, I don't trust the other boys! [with nicknames like Hurricane Henry, G-Force, Tor-Knox-O and Wreck 'Em Rhett, do you blame me?? :) ] I used my silhouette the night before to cut out all of the pieces and then made the yarn pom poms for the ear muffs. I stayed up stupidly late making them and was kicking myself for doing it, but the first thing G said when he saw the was "Beautiful!" so it was totally worth it!<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16238893747" title="snowman2 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="snowman2" height="320" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8619/16238893747_2e93872dfb_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
While this project does require some adult supervision, it was mostly just because we used hot glue guns for the ear muffs. Glue sticks worked for all of the paper parts and then there was no worry of little hands getting hurt.<br />
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Here are the kiddos with their finished snowmen! [this was the best we could get with this crowd!]<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/15802296964" title="DSC_0914 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0914" height="428" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7337/15802296964_4f4744b2c8_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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I know we're into February now, but with the Texas weather, you never know when our next snow day will be! Make the most of being cooped up inside and make a party out of it!<br />
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[here's the fine print: you'll spend all week getting your house ready for the party and then have six little ones and two babies show up and you really will think that a tornado hit. every toy possible will be pulled out, water will probably overflow from the sink, several kids will end up crying at some point and something will get spilt. but, the kids will totally love it, the moms will enjoy the conversation and everyone will leave brainstorming the next party idea! so skip the cleaning, leave the toys out and get ready to have some fun!]Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-29894318970221648942015-02-02T10:30:00.000-06:002015-02-03T22:31:31.914-06:00You Can't Handle...<div style="text-align: center;">
this cuteness. </div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/16398648086" title="DSC_0963 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="DSC_0963" height="640" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7327/16398648086_c8c3891b10_z.jpg" width="428" /></a><br />
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[ cody was away for the weekend so we did whatever it took to survive. which included painting, lots of movies, mcdonalds, and lots of diet dr. pepper for mom. thankful to have dad back and that paint washes off! ] </div>
Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-12900744703592472252015-01-30T22:42:00.000-06:002015-01-30T22:42:07.675-06:00Five On Friday[ one ]<br />
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twice this week griff has woken up from his nap but wasn't quite ready to actually <i>be</i> awake, so we spent almost a good hour together rocking. cuddling like that hasn't happened in well over a year and it was good for my heart.<br />
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[ two ]<br />
<br />
i enjoyed three days away last week in the metroplex for a children's ministers retreat. while i had a good time at the retreat, i can't act like i wasn't just as excited to spend some quality time at north park mall. of course, the one time i have my christmas money burning a whole in my pocket, there was nothing cute to be found. don't you hate it when that happens?<br />
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[ three ]<br />
<br />
back in november we started having some water pressure issues. showering, filling the tub, washing dishes, and doing laundry were all become hard to actually accomplish. we do have an older home, so we were afraid it might be a leak or something major along those lines, but our water bill wasn't higher and everything looked fine under the house.<br />
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last weekend cody was rinsing something off outside and noticed a spigot in the ground next to the faucet. he messed with it a little bit, came in, tested the pressure and discovered something major. turns out that spigot actually controls the water to the house. he thought it controlled the faucet and turned it down low BACK IN NOVEMBER before our first major freeze.<br />
<br />
we've had a good laugh about it but are also thankful it wasn't something wrong with our house!<br />
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<br />
[ four ]<br />
<br />
Our MOPS speaker today was a lady who owns a nursery. [ gardening, not children. ] she talked a lot about native plants to our area and what will grow best here that are very drought tolerant. i asked how often to water and as it turns out, it seems to be that i might be killing my plants because i'm drowning them! turns out that they need to dry out between waterings... not stay soaking wet. (going three weeks between waterings probably didn't help either!) she gave us a list of butterfly and hummingbird attracting plants so i'm hoping to (maybe, finally, dreaming of ) have a green thumb this year!<br />
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[ five ]<br />
<br />
cody is currently gone to <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.268generation.com%2F&ei=u1nMVJyYKoWWNoHlgNAO&usg=AFQjCNHETzx8LSPgoHVdK89P1i4LFE3CeQ&sig2=ttXi7af66SsV3vInsD-sag&bvm=bv.85076809,d.eXY">passion</a> with our high school students. why is it that everything in your house seems so much scarier when you're alone? i have triple checked to be sure all doors are locked [with chains in place] and am now considering leaving the lamps on all night in the living room in case i wake up and need to check for intruders. please tell me i'm not the only one who turns into a baby for one night alone?????Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-43179126333707292122015-01-25T23:26:00.000-06:002015-01-25T23:26:33.831-06:00Big Emotions. A few weeks ago I read a post on the <a href="http://www.handsfreemama.com/2015/01/12/the-3-second-pause-that-can-save-a-morning-spare-some-pain/">Hands Free Mama blog</a> that I really loved. If you haven't read it, you should. The jist is to take a three second pause before reacting to your kids in stressful situations to keep yourself from doing something you're going to regret. It really is such a challenging post and a great thought to live by.<br />
<br />
<br />
Did you know though, that when you are watching your child [in slow motion, of course] <b>purposefully</b> take a pool noodle and whack his friend in the face, it's <i>really</i> hard to remember to take a three second pause before responding to him. Especially when it happens in front of a room full of mothers and all you can think is: why did you have to do it <b><i>here</i></b>??????<br />
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<br />
Later that night as I was thinking back on what happened I realized I better get a game plan for next time he hits. Because I do imagine there will be a next time and spanking as a punishment for hitting is just a little contradictory. [ <i>how did you handle this seasoned moms?</i> ] The other thing that struck me last night is <b>how hard it must be to be two.</b> I imagine that Griffin probably experiences the same emotions I do during a certain time of the month. Only, I only have to deal with it a few days a month and he's experiencing it every twenty-four hours. <b>Can you imagine what that must feel like? </b>Thankfully, his brain forgives and forgets much quicker than mine. I need a three second pause to remember that it's hard to be two and this big emotion we're dealing with will soon give way to another big emotion.<br />
<br />
<br />
Last night's regret was still playing in my head today as Griffin was throwing toys after I told him not too. The wooden train hitting my head required a firm talking to [ does it sound like we've hit the terrible two's? ] and I sent him off to his room to be by himself because he was not being nice. Would you believe that being sent to his room brought out just as many tears as the spanking? Big emotions.<br />
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<br />
<b>It must be so hard to be two</b>. And some days, <b>it's so hard to be a momma.</b> I give in to the big emotions and forget to pause and end up with some regrets. Thankfully though, he forgives and forgets and soon enough I'm reminded that this stage has some big emotions, but the throwing and hitting and crying for no apparent reason pale in comparison to the best big emotion. <br />
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<br />
A hug, a kiss and "I lub you." <b>It's so great to be a momma.</b>Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-65149521980406329352015-01-11T10:30:00.000-06:002015-01-11T10:30:00.762-06:003 Months [a look back] sigh. i was looking through old drafts and found this one in there. where did my baby go? i miss those leg rolls, but i am thankful griff has kinda grown into his big head! :)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/8267184859/" title="g2 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="g2" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8504/8267184859_d9582ddbd5_c.jpg" height="800" width="538" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/8268254422/" title="g3 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="g3" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8268254422_4713b04386_c.jpg" height="536" width="800" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/8267184727/" title="g4 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="g4" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8212/8267184727_5626dfcc0b_c.jpg" height="550" width="800" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/8268254200/" title="g6 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="g6" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8268254200_26be3234e3_c.jpg" height="536" width="800" /></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/8267184471/" title="g7 by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="g7" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8363/8267184471_93dabf8650_c.jpg" height="536" width="800" /></a>
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<br />Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-64101705433276005182015-01-09T22:52:00.001-06:002015-01-09T22:52:46.119-06:00Five On Friday[ one ]<br />
<br />
happy new year! we had plans to have a wild night celebrating with our youth group but the party got cancelled because of some crazy ice weather we had. cody and i ended up renting four movies and watching them all in one day while cuddled up on the couch. basically, we watched more movies in one afternoon on the last day of the year than we saw all year long in the theatre. the ice also delayed us from being able to go and pick up griffin who was with the grandparents. i was majorly bummed, but we did enjoy staying up late and sleeping in while he was gone. it's a shame he won't let me sleep in till 10:30 every day!<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/15622890673" title="IMG_1786.JPG by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1786.JPG" height="320" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7505/15622890673_54ee445fc2_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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[ two ]<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57931391@N08/15622921963" title="IMG_1726.JPG by abbynein, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1726.JPG" height="320" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7558/15622921963_35f8092826_n.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
<br />
christmas is so much fun with toddlers. griff is obsessed with all things "mcqueen" right now and we got him a ride on four wheeler for his big christmas present. i thought it would be a great toy for him to ride around our "track" [aka the loop you make through our kitchen, hallway and living room] but it turns out he's not the best at steering. i took him up to the church to ride in the gym to get some practice and save my cabinets and i know now how we're going to make it through the winter. he loved racing and even took a break to preform a half time show.<br />
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[ three ]<br />
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you may have noticed that gas prices have been dropping recently. great for my wallet, but not the best when you live in a town that is economically fueled by oil. our gas is typically 20 - 30 cents higher than the big cities around us, but i was floored when we were driving home for christmas and it was $1.89 as we were pulling into town. apparently the enthusiam for which i said the price was contagious, because all of a sudden we started hearing "dollar eighty nine!" over and over from the back. so now g has a new trick that he will occasionally do on command!<br />
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as it is the new year, i know i should be a bandwagoner who tries to lose weight. it's just so cold outside though i'm having a hard time wanting to do any physical activity that would require me to get out of my warm clothes. i'm telling myself that once it's warm i'll be better (and by warm i only mean above freezing, which will be a vast improvement for us.) so instead of working out, we're focusing on trying to not eat out for the month. i'll be happy if we can just make it three weeks. tonight i made calzones for dinner and it actually felt almost as satisfying as going out. i should also clarify that i didn't "make" the calzones at all. we discovered on a ice day walmart run that they have calzones in the deli section that all you have to do is bake. they're $2.50 and really delicious. we will probably have calzone fridays for the rest of the month...until we can go back to whataburger!<br />
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we are final looking to upgrade our tv from the small one we bought 7 years ago when we got married. in our research we found this one:<br />
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while i would like to make a joke that it's the one we're getting, i just can't even wrap my mind around the fact that some people pay $25,000 for a tv!! i'm assuming these are celebrities who buy tv's like this, but i guess i would have thought that they got it somewhere fancier than best buy. guess i should feel comforted that they shop at the same places as the rest of us... only on a much larger budget!<br />
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<br />Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8113256831181539701.post-77557777993497362442014-12-07T19:24:00.000-06:002014-12-07T19:24:28.402-06:00Hello Old FriendsI know, I know. Looooooooooooong time no blog. I was telling my sister in law over the Thanksgiving break that as much as I love Griffin and this 2 year old stage, it is so exhausting! As much as I would love to do a lot of creative things, I'm all tapped out at the end of the day. Hence the reason it's been over 7 weeks since anything has been posted here. I would like to stay things will get better soon.... but no promises!<br />
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What a better place to start that an update on Griff?<br />
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This dude. Just the perfect blend of sweet and orneriness! It's so funny to see what his mind comes up with these days. I will catch him doing something he's not supposed to be doing and he will instantly try to give me a hug or a kiss to try and make me forget what he was doing. He is still obsessed with all movies, though Toy Story 3 seems to the one that gets most repeated. (Which is at least a break from Cars over Thanksgiving. I'm not sure mom could handle one more viewing of MaKeen!)<br />
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His love of movies did come in handy on our trip to Ruidoso for Thanksgiving. Poor guy had pink eye so he wasn't feeling his best which I'm sure subdued him a bit for the trip, but he basically watched movies for the full 5 hour drive and never once complained about being stuck in his car seat. We were so thankful he did so well and are now much more willing to take him back. (Though, vacation is Ruidoso with a toddler isn't quite the same as without one! ;)<br />
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Griff and Jax had a blast together. It's so fun to see them play. (Also, so humbling to have Griff yelling "NO SIR JAX!! NO SIR!!" Surely he only hears that at daycare... right?!) G man lives up to his role as the older cousin and bosses Jax around. I like to pretend he gets that from his dad!<br />
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The worst part of Thanksgiving was coming home. We arrived back to shredded curtains, knocked over decorations and a mess in our house.... caused by a squirrel. Yes. A SQUIRREL.<br />
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It got in through a hole over our stove and wrecked a little bit of havoc while we were gone. Cody was able to put a trashcan over him and carry it outside to get rid of him and then I started cloroxing everything possible. There's nothing like the creepy feeling of not knowing what all a squirrel walked on in your house and worrying that you're going to wake up in the middle of the night cuddled up beside you. Ugh. I start squirming just thinking about it! The story made for a good children's sermon (sometimes we have big plans to do great things for God and the devil throws a squirrel our way to mess them up) and as I told our church this morning, Cody is currently the only rodent living in my house :). (totally joking of course. I had his permission to say it and they all laughed!)<br />
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Last thing.... we've been saving up for quite a while in hopes of joining a super cool club. It actually turned out to be a long ordeal, but the short version is this:<br />
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We now own a mini van and couldn't be more excited! (I know... not many willingly want to join this club!) Give Cody 15 minutes of your time and he'll sell you on why you should own one too!<br />
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<br />Abbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07536226634130168048noreply@blogger.com0